My AIP Paleo Journey…

A Long Unintentional Pause….

Well…..sorry for the long pause in between blogs. I have been dealing with many things. First, a shoulder injury from work and the physical therapy and doctors appointments that goes along with that. Two, I had a bad Fibromyalgia flare (literally could barely move) that started Saturday night and did not end until Sunday around 4pm. Ugh. I am hoping eating on the AIP Paleo format will help with those flares. Thirdly, I have been dealing with a lot in my personal life and needed some time for reflection. This is not a b***h session, so with that said, what have I been up to and where am I going from here?

Well I HAVE been researching AIP friendly recipes on the interwebs. I found a couple of nice Paleo blogs that contained really cool recipes such as: AIP Meatloaf, Citrus-Bison Meatballs, Crispy Sweet Potato Noodles (cool, right?), AIP Carrot and Sweet Potato Chili, Nightshade-Free Cherry BBQ Sauce, Bacon-Beef Liver Pâté, Garlic “Mayo”, and even how to make Coconut Milk! I will share the Garlic “Mayo” recipe because everyone needs a condiment and that is HARD to do while following the AIP protocol.

To make the mayo, place the coconut manna/butter, warm water, olive oil, garlic cloves and salt in a blender and blend on high for a one to two minutes, until the sauce thickens. Let cool for an hour at room temperature or place it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. If you would like to use it as a cold sauce, thin with water until the desired consistency is reached. Please note that if you put the “mayo” in the fridge, it will harden. You will have to pop in the microwave and warm gently for a few seconds or let it come to room temperature naturally.

Well I hope that turns out yummy. I cannot wait to try it! Also the Cherry BBQ Sauce sounds yum.

I also have been exploring online websites for grass fed and grass finished, pastured meats. I went to US Wellness Meats (recommended by http://whole30.com/whole30-approved/ and http://www.thepaleomom.com/products-love) also known as http://www.grasslandbeef.com/. I ended up buying a lot of meat (well over $100 worth) from here. Meat isn’t cheap, especially good for you kind. Most of their products (beef, lamb, and bison) and are grass fed and pastured. Their pork, chickens, and ducks are raised on a 100% GMO-free vegetarian diet. The pigs, chickens, and ducks are also free-range and never given antibiotics or hormones. Also none of their products contain nitrates/nitrites or MSG and many are sugar free.

So what did I get? My list includes: 72% lean ground pork, sugar free canadian bacon slices, sugar free pork bacon ends, beef minute steaks, 85% lean ground beef, a 3lb beef bottom round roast, stew beef, beef braunschweigar, beef liver, beef tallow/lard, ground lamb, and boneless/skinless chicken breasts. What is Braunschweigar? Well braunschweigar is a 60/40 mix of grass-fed trim and grass-fed beef liver that comes in a fully cooked 1 pound package ready to slice and serve. Figured it would be nice for on the go or maybe heated up at breakfast with some fruit. I’m not a liver fan, so we shall see how I like it. *shrugs* What annoys me about the site is they are out of a lot of things I wanted to try. I specifically got on today to get SF pork bacon and SF beef bacon, but both were sold out in a manner of minutes. I couldn’t even get beef bacon ends (trim). Argh.

When I felt better yesterday evening, I went out to a local market called The Mustard Seed. I wanted to see their meat selection vs. Earthfare and Seven Grains. They definitely have a better meat selection than the other two “organic” stores. Apparently if I would have come earlier, they had more meat, but ran out. So my goal is to go back later in the week to check out their meats again. I did end of getting a package of beef liver, two free range boneless pork chops, ground lamb, and a large portion of wild caught cod. I also picked up some Coconut Aminos and Coconut Vinegar (both by Coconut Secret) for some recipes later on. I’m not a fan of Apple Cider Vinegar (I do use ACV in my bone broth to draw out the marrow) so hopefully I will like this better.

Well that is all for me. Goals this week are to download The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook by Mickey Trescott and have all my foods ready to go for my Saturday or Sunday AIP Protocol start date (I haven’t decided yet). I have to update my PayPal account to get that cookbook though. Wish me luck. I haven’t used PayPal in years.